Concrete-mold.



PATENTED SEPT. 19 1905.

I. D.'TRUSS. GONGRETB MOLD. APPLICATION FILED MAY a1, 1906.

Witnooow Jfl Truss ANDREW. a (mum cu, PHQTO-LITNBHHAPMERS. msumswm n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 19, 1905.

Application filed May 31, 1905. Serial No. 262,977.

To all whom, it may concern..-

Be it known that I, J AMES D. TRUss, a citizen of the United States,residing at Eastlake, in the county of Jefferson and State of Alabama,have invented new and useful Improvements in Concrete-Molds, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in molds and molding apparatusfor the building of concrete, cement, and other composition walls.

It is the object of my invention to facilitate the construction of wallsand buildings made of cement or concrete compositions by providingmolding apparatus which may be readily handled by unskilled labor, so asto build any character of wall,-whether battered, stepped, or parallel.

.My invention comprises means to accurately maintain the verticalalinement of the wall and to provide for the ready adjustment of themold-boxes.

It also comprises means for forming the curved corners for the walls andprojections to thicken the wall at points desired for the formation offines or the reception of framework.

More particularly, my invention comprises the use of verticalguide-posts and adjustable mold-supporting means which are provided withdevices to space them from the guideposts and maintain them in anydesired relative position to each other.

These and other improvements in the details of construction andarrangement of parts are hereinafter more fully described, andillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is an endelevation illustrating a construction of the mold-supporting devices inposition for forming walls with parallel sides. Fig. 2 is a similar viewwith the mold adjusted for forming a wall having a slanting face. Fig. 3is a top plan view of my improved molding apparatus in place for formingan angled wall. Fig. 4 is a perspective detail view of the hinge-supportfor the front plate of the mold. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional viewacross the channel-supporting iron and illustrating the manner oflaterally adjusting the mold-supports.

Similar reference-numerals refer to similar parts throughout thedrawings.

In utilizing my present invention to construct a wall 1 first set up anumber of vertical guide-posts, preferably two for each mold-box, andarrange them at a distance of several inches from the outer face of thewall to be built. I then take mold-boxes comprising front plates 2 andback plates 3, respectively, connected at their ends to upright bars 4and 5, which are pivotally connected in the manner hereinafter describedto transverselydisposed channel-irons 6. The bars 4 are each providedwith two metal plates 7, having a central opening on either side ofwhich are disposed two journal-brackets 8. A spacerbar 9 is adapted tobe inserted between the brackets 8 and is provided with a pivot-pin 10,which rests thereon, and a stop 11, which engages the lower end of theplate and arrests the downward swing of the spacer when it reaches atrue vertical position to the side of the bar 4:. These two spacers 9are equal in size and are provided with curved end portions 12, struckon an are from their pivotpoint and adapted to bear against theguideposts 1 when the bar 4 is drawn toward the latter by means of astrap 13, which engages the bar 4 and passes behind the post 1, whereits end is angled and a wedge 14: inserted between this angled end andthe post. When by means of the strap and wedge the bar 4 is drawn towardthe vertical post 1, the spacers 9 engage the posts and serve tomaintain the front plate in a true vertical position, as it will beparallel with the posts. The arced bearing end of the spacers permits oftheir having a slight angular variation from a horizontal positionwithout changing their spacing effect.

The upper end of the bar A enters the channel in the channel-iron 6, aclearance of about one inch existing on each side between the bar andthe sides 15 of the iron. Sufficient clearance is left between the upperends of. the bars 4 and 5 and the top of the channel-iron to permit thelatter bars to swing outwardly a sufficient distance to disengage themold from the wall. As only about one inch is necessary for thispurpose, this clearance need not be large. The fact that the manner ofsupporting the channel-irons permits of their angular adjustment alsoenables the bars 4: and 5 to have a wider range of angular adjustment.An elongated plate 16 is secured to the inner face of each bar 4 at itsupper end. This plate is IIO these plates 17 and is provided with anopening 19 for the reception of a pivot-bolt 20, which is passedtransversely through suitable apertures in the sides 15 of achannel-iron. The upper end of the plate is provided with a raisedshoulder 21, which is engaged by the link 18 and is adapted to be filedor cut away to permit this link when in engagement therewith to hangparallel with the bar 4. As I intend to cast these plates 16, theirregularity in the-casing which might afiect this parallelism will beprovided for by filing away the shoulder 21.- It "will be noted that thebars 4 engage the links 18 opposite to their pivotpoint, while the otherconnection between the links and bars is several inches below thispoint. This gives two points for determining adjustment, which willprove of particu lar advantage where the adjusting framework :for themold serves as a brace between posts. As used for this purpose it willbe noted in Fig. 1 that two braces are disposed between the guide-posts.

The posts 4 and 5 above the sides of the mold are connected by straps22, whose adjacentends are threaded and engaged by a turnbuckle 23,which provides for their ready adjustment or separation, as occasion mayrequire. The upper end of the bar 5 is provided with a plate 24, havinga perforated lug or ear through which a pivot pin or bolt 25 passes andsecures the bar to the channel-iron 6. It will be noted that thechannel-iron is provided with a number of openings 26, any desirednumber of which may be provided to enablethe bars 4 and 5 to have theirpivotpoints adjustable to and from each other.

In operation after the front and rear plates of the mold have been setup in a vertical position parallel with posts 1 and spaced apart byremovable struts concrete is introduced and packed down, after which thestruts are removed and the bottom layer of the wall thus formed allowedto harden. hen this has occurred, the straps 13 are loosened and thespacers thrown upwardly to allow the moldplates to be disengaged fromthe wall by operating the turnbuckles to spread them apart. It will benoted that the front plate by means of its link-hinge Will swingoutwardly while maintaining its parallelism with the wall. This enablesit to clear the wall Without striking the posts 1, which may be veryclose to the Wall when formed with projections. The mold-plates willthen be lifted until they overlap the top of the wall about six inches,when the spacers are lowered, the straps 13 tightened, and theturnbuckles operated to cause the plates to clamp the wall. dent thatthe posts and spacers will preserve the vertical alinement of the frontface of the wall and that by using the Wall itself as a spacer for theback plate it will cooperate It will be eviof the wall parallel with thefront. The mold is again filled with concrete and this operationrepeated until the wall is of the desired height, it being noted thatthe handling of the molds and the construction-work is so simple that itcan be performed without requiring skilled labor, and therefore moreeconomically than concrete walls can now be built.

When the mold-platesare of considerable length, I brace them atintermediate points to prevent spreading by providing two or more setsof bars 4 and 5, connected to "the plates at any desired point andconnected overhead by channel-irons 6, to which they are pivoted in themanner already described. Turnbucklcs and straps are used to adjust theplates. It is not necessary to provide guideposts 1 for intermediatepoints, so the spacers 9 for these braces may be dispensed with.

Where it is desired to build a battered wall, the guide-posts 1' will bedisposed on the side of the wall having the vertical face and bars 5will be set at the desired angle for the battered face and held in thisposition relatively to the bars 4 by straps 22, turnbuckles 23, andchains 27, connected to hooks 28, connected to the bars 5. As the wallrises the pivot-points for the bars 5 will be adjusted. by means ofopenings 26, nearer to the pivotpoints of the bars 4, the openings 26being suitably arranged for different angles of 'inclination. As thebars approach each other the slack in the adjusting means for holdingthem together is taken up by bringing the hooks 28 into engagement withthe several links of the chain 27 and adjusting for intermediate spacingby means of the turnbuckle. The spacers being readily removable, I canbuild the wall with projections or ornamenta tions Without changing theguide-posts by using shorter spacers, which enables me to bring thefront plate of the mold closer to the posts.

In forming curved corners for the walls I provide the correspondingadjacent ends of the sides of two molds with countersunk recesses intheir inner faces, in which are inserted curved metal plates 29, held inplace by rivets or bolts 30. These plates curve outwardly in the desiredarc and at their outer ends overlap a vertically-disposed plate 31,carrying two or more studs, which pass between the free ends of theplates and through suitable openings in arc-plates 82. Nuts engage thethreaded ends of these studs and draw the plates 32 and the plate 31together to lock the plates 29 in position. To remove the mold, it isonly necessary to unscrew the nuts, when the plates 32 may be disengagedfrom the plates 29 and the latter spread outwardly to disengage themfrom the wall.

To form any desired projections or enlargements along the sides of thewall, I provide short side pieces for a mold, such as-33 in Fig. 1. Bentplates 34 are connected to these side pieces, which are countersunk toreceive them. These plates project outwardly from the sides of the moldat slightlyconverging angles to enable the side to be removed outwardlyfrom the wall, the link-hinge for the side of the mold being ofparticular advantage in this connection to facilitate its being moved toclear the wall. The angled ends of the plates 34 have a plate 35inserted between them and the interior of the mold to prevent the escapeof the composition between the meetingedges of the plates. A clearanceis provided between the adjacent ends of moldplates to enable them to bemoved toward each other sufficiently to withdraw them from between theinelosing sides of the constructed wall. This clearance is covered by aplate 37 to prevent escape of concrete. In this connection the clearancebetween the upper ends of the bars 4 and 5 and the sides 15 of thechannel-irons will permit these bars to be moved sidewise an inch, thelinks 18 sliding on their pivot-pins 20; This movement will givesufficient adjustment to the molds to enable them to be separated fromthe wall at angles or corners for the purpose of removal. The severalchannel-irons carrying the supporting-frames for the mold may be liftedby ropes, chains, or bars 38 by hand or with any desirable hoistingapparatus.

Where a low wall or curbing is to be built, the guide-posts may bedispensed with and my molding apparatus successfully employed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire toprotect by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with the outer wall of a mold, of a verticalguide-post, means to connect said wall to said post, and pivoted spacermembers carried by said wall and adapted to engage said post.

2. The combination with the outer wall of a mold, of supporting membersconnected thereto, vertical guide-posts adjacent to said members, hingedspacer devices carried by said members and adapted to engage said posts,and means to stop said devices when they have swung to a position atright angles to said members.

3. The combination with a concrete-mold,

of vertical guide-posts therefor, interchangeable spacer memberspivotally connected to said mold and adapted to engage said posts.

4. The combination of a concrete-mold, of vertical guide-posts therefor,pivoted spacer members disposed between said mold and posts, saidmembers having curved bearingsurfaces on their free ends strucksubstantially on an are from the pivot-point.

5. The combination with the outer wall of a mold, of bars pivotallysupported from cross members and connected to said wall, spacer devicespivotally connected to said bars and adapted to swing downwardly to aposition at right angles thereto, vertical guide-posts, and

asliding adjustable connection between said posts and bars whereby saidspacer devices are drawn into engagement with said posts.

6. The combination in a concrete-mold, of front and back plates, memberspivotally suspended from a cross-bar and connected to said plates. alink connection to the members carried by one plate to enable it toswing outwardly while maintaining its parallelism to said other plate,means to adjust said other plate respectively to said first-mentionedplate, vertical guide-posts adjacent to said link-supported plate, andmeans to space said plate from said posts.

7. The combination in a concrete-mold, of front and back plates, meansto adjustably connect said plates to a cross-piece and to each other,vertical guide-posts, and means to space one of said plates from saidposts.

8. The combination in a concrete-mold, of

front and back plates, arms rigidly connected thereto, cross members towhich oppositelydisposed arms are pivotally connected, and meanscomprising threaded members and a turnbuckle for adjusting said platesrelatively to each other.

9. The combination in a concrete-mold, of front and back plates, armsconnected thereto, a cross member above said plates, means to adjustablypivot said arms to said member, and screw adjusting devices engagingsaid arms near said plates and serving to hold them in any desiredadjustment.

10. The combination of a concrete-mold having front and back plates, anda transverse member disposed above said plates and con nected thereto,the connection for one of said plates comprising a link pivoted at oneend to an intermediate point of a bar carried by said plate and at theother end to said transverse member. the upper end of said bar beingadapted to engage said link near its upper end, for the purposesdescribed.

11. The combination with mold-plates, of arms connected thereto, a crossmember, and a journal-support for said arms upon which they are adaptedto swing said mold-plates to and from each other and upon which they arecapable of lateral movement to adjust the mold-plates sidewise.

12. The combination with mold-plates, of arms connected thereto,channel-irons disposed across the mold, and means to pivotally connectsaid. arms to journal-bolts in said channel-irons, said means beingadapted to slide on said bolts to provide lateral adjustment.

13. The combination with mold-plates, of transversemembers disposedabove said plates, links pivotally connected to one of said plates andto said transverse members, stop means acting through said link-supportto maintain said link and plate parallel, and means to con-- nect saidother plate to said members.

14. The combination with mold-plates, of

left between adjacent ends of two or more back mold-plates, aclosure-plate to prevent escape of concrete through said clearance, andpivoted supporting members for said back mold-plates which have lateralplay on their pivots.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of tWosubscribing Witnesses.

JAMES D. TRUSS.

W'itnesses:

A. R. FoRsYTH, W. E. DOUGLAS.

